Car coupler



Aug. 9, 1960 w. J. METZGER CAR COUPLER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 7 Filed July 31, 1957 INVENTOR. W/LL/AM J M TZE/P ,ATTOFNH Aug. 9, 1960 w. J. METZGER 2,948,414

CAR COUPLER Filed July 31, 1957 2 She'ets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. WILL/A M J/VHZGZW I William J. Metzger, East Cleveland, Ohio,

2,948,414 CAR COUPLER assignor to National Malleable and Steel Castings Company,

Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio 7 Filed July '31, 1957, Ser. No. 675,359

10 Claims. (Cl. 213-127) This invention relates to automatic knuckle-type railway car couplers and particularly to improvements in a knuckle-throwing and knuckle-locking mechanism.

. In such couplers, as typified by the A.A.R. Standard E Coupler, a knuckle pivotally mounted in the front portion of the coupler head is swung from a couplerlocked position to a coupler-open position by a two-armed knuckle thrower, pivoted at the junction of the arms. Coupler-opening action is imparted to the thrower by a look as it moves from a knuckle-locking position in its lengthwise directionwithin achamber provided in the head. The chamber and the lock are relatively contoured so that the lock may pivot as it approaches the head end of the chamber, causing a leg portion ofthe lock to swing against one arm of'the thrower and the other arm thereof to engage a tail portion of the knuckle.

Pivoting of the lock is conventionally obtained by engagement of a lug provided in the front face of the head of the lock with the overhanging surface. of a recess in the front wall (known also as the bufing wall) of the chamber. The front surface of this wall is engaged by the front face of the knuckle of the opposing coupler of the same coupling when a bufiing force is transmitted from one coupler to the other. sarily transmitted, at least in part, through this bufiing wall and its mating knuckle. Normally, the buffing force is shared by the two sets of engaged knuckles and bufiing walls in the coupling. However, when a-worn coupler is mated to a relatively new coupler, the entire bufling force may be transmitted through one knuckle and the buffing wall engaged therewith.

Although the wall may be strengthened by eliminating the recess for pivoting the lock, the pivot fulcrum must be relocated elsewherein the head, presumably rearwardly, with a corresponding reduction in the leverage available for pivoting the lock against the resistance imposedon the lock leg by the thrower and the knuckle.

Such force is neces-.

head in which is pivoted a knuckle having a radial inward surface and a radial outward surface, preferably located on the tail of the coupler, relatively radially spaced with respect to the pivotal axis of the knuckle. The knuckle thrower is pivotally supported by the head and provided with a radially inward surface and a radially outward surface spaced radially with respect to the thrower axis and spaced relatively to the knuckle axis to engage, respectively, the outward and the inward surfaces of the knuckle. The thrower-engaging surfaces of the knuckle and the knuckle-engaging surfaces of the thrower arerelatively disposed to causeengagernent of the inward surface of the thrower with the outward surface of the knuckle ahead of engagement of the outward surface of the thrower with inward surface of the knuckle as the thrower and the kunckle are forced from their coupler-locked positions.

The increased starting leverage provided by the two stage knuckle-throwing operationdescribed herein has made it possible (1) to overcome the static friction of the knuckle with less manual effort and (2) to eliminate the conventional system for fulcruming a lock, i.e., to eliminate the front-facefulcrum lug of the lock and the cooperating recess in the buffing wall of the coupler head. Thus, in a preferred embodiment, the lock comprises a head portion having a straight, flat, lateral face extending in the lengthwise direction of the lock, and a leg fixedly joined to, and extending in the lengthwise direction of the look away from the lower end of the head portion. The head portion has a ridge and a top surface defining its upper end. The length of the ridge extends in trans verse relation to the length of the lock with one side thereof forming a portion of said face and the other side being steeply inclined with respect to the face. The front wall of the lock chamber (buffing wall) is constructed to a generally uniform thickness, free of the conventional lock-fulcrum recess to provide unusual strength.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the tion of a coupler embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional plan view of the coupler illustrated in Fig. 1 with the top portion of the head removed; Fig. 2a is a perspective view of a kunckle thrower;

Figs. 3, 4 and 5 are fragmentary elevations in section illustrating various stages of a coupler-opening operation As this leverage is small in the conventional coupler, an

resistance to bufling forces.

1 Still another object is to provide a lock for a knuckle type coupler having toggle actionvvhich produces more final portion as well thrust on the knuckle thrower in a I as in an initial portion of its knuckle opening stroke. An additional object is to provide a top operated" lifter assuringsatisfactory anti-creep protection.

To achieve the above and other objects and to over- ;come the various disadvantages of the conventional devices discussed above, a coupler is provided which has a following the coupler-closed stage, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2; 7

Figs. 6, 7 and 8 are fragmentary plan views in section illustrating, respectively, stages of the coupler operation as shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary elevation in section illustrating, in particular, a top-operated lifter and a cooperating portion of a coupler head; and

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary rear elevation of the lifter and the lock shown in Fig. 9.

Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate a coupler 5 in a normally locked condition, wherein a knuckle 6 is secured from rotation about its axial pin 7, by a lock Son one side and on the other side,by an inner wall surface of the coupler head 10. As shown, an extension 12 of an underside pulling lug 13 of the knuckle tail portion 14 extends under a head portion 8a of the lock 8 while a knuckle side surface 15, comprising in' part the end surface of a pulling lug 16 on the upper side of the tail-portion, engages a side surface of the lock 8. The lock is normally held in the position just described by gravity.

In the coupler-locked position, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, a knuckle thrower 18 is positioned within the head with its knuckle-engaging arm '19 disposed adjacent the wall surface 9 and its lock-engaging arm 20 almost in contact with the leg 8b of the lock 8. -In the normal Patented Aug. 9, 1960,

position of the coupler, the arms extend generally horizontally from a generally vertical pivotal axis 23 of the thrower.

7 Double prong thrower Ari important feature of this invention is a constructioii of the kii'uckle 6 and the knuckle thrower 18 which provides two-stage actuation of the knuckle by the knuckle thrower.

To obtain two-stage operation, the thrower arm 19 is provided with two prongs or surfaces 21 and 22, each of which provides a knuckle-engaging surface. Surfaces 2i and 22 are radially spaced from the axis 23 of the thrower and are also relatively spaced as provided by the separate prong formation of the arm 19. u

The knuckle 6 comprises a conventional thrower pad 25 providing a vertical laterally-facing thrower-engaging surface that is radially inward toward the knuckle axis respect to a relatively radially outward surface 13a of, the lug 13. The thrower-engaging surface of the pad 25 is adapted to be engaged by the prong or surface 21 of the thrower. The tail section 'of the knuckle '6 is modified from the conventional construction by provision of a shortened underside pulling lug 13 of which its left and surface, as the coupler is viewed from the front, is a'd'apted to engage the prong or surface 22 of the thrower. As shown, the surfaces of the knuckle and thrower which engage during opening of the coupler are arranged and spaced with respect to respective pivot axes of the thrower and the knuckle to traverse and engage within the region separating the axes. Moreover, as viewed in plan in Figs. 2, 6, 7, and 8, these surfaces all face in the same direction of rotation in respect to respective pivot i.e., counterclockwise.

The initial stage of knuckle throwing is effected by contact of the surface 22 with the knuckle surface 13a and reta'tion of the knuckle through a predetermined path of several degrees (approximately 7 degrees in the embodiment shown) before the surface 21 engages the thrower pad 25. The movement of the knuckle by the surface 22 requires relatively little pressure on the thrower arm 20, as compared to that required to turn the knuckle by engagement of surfaces 21 and 25a. Obviously, there is considerable torque multiplication applied to the knuckle as the result of having, in the initial stage of knuckle throwing, (l) lengthened the driven lever "arm of the knuckle (conventionally extending from its axis at 7:1 to surface 25a) to the surface 13a and (2) having shortened the driving or actuating lever arm of the thrower 18 (normallyextending from the axis at 23 to the so ace 21) to the surface 22. Since it has been found that torque applied to the knuckle, to start it from its normally locked position shown in Figs. 1 and 2, is much greater as compared to the torque needed'to maintain the knuckle in its 'rotative movement, the 'first'stage lever "system just described, is particularly advantageous in overc'foiniiig the starting friction of the knuckle. However, after the knuckle is in motion, and after rotation of, e.g., 7 degrees, the conventional arrangement, as typified by surface 21 and thrower pad 25, may be employed to complete the movement of the knuckle to the coupleropened position with substantially less rotation of the thrower than required in the lever system of the first stage.

Lock'Head and bufii'ng wall construction Another feature of the present invention, believed to be a departure from the prior art'couplers, is the front ffacefa'nd top surface construction of the lock head 8a, and that of the front wall surface 28-of the lock-travers- "able re'gion 29. The lock head 8a is provided with 'a substantially that or straight front face 8m free of a conventional forwardlyprojecting'fulcrum lug, Thelock head of the present invention s characterized 'by a ridge extendin'g'widthwise along the forward'marginof its top surfacetin. The forward side of theridge 30 forms apart of the frontfaceBm of the'liead portion. The

rear side of the ridge 30 joins concavely with the top surface 811, wherefrom the top surface extends generally horizontally rearwardly at the vertically aligned position of the lock. The ridge extends above the top surface to a height causing the crown of the ridge to be the sole surface of the lock in pivotal engagement with the coupler head in swinging to the full coupleropen position illustrated in Fig. 4. In an uncoupling operation, the lock head may move vertically lengthwise of the surface 28 until the ridge 30 engages a notch 31 in the forward margin of the ceiling surface of chamber 29. As shown, the surface 23 is free from any recess such as conventionally required for fulcruming the lock, thereby permitting the wall 33 to be made thicker, more uniform in thickness, and consequently more resistant to buffing forces.

Lever arm system It is observable in Figs. 3, 4 and 5 that the leg of the lock swings an are about the approximate point 44. In conventional couplers, the pivoting of the lock is usually efiected at a point approximately within the recessed lower portion of a wall in the place of wall 33, i.e., by a projection extending from the head of the lock from the lower front of its head portion into such lower wall portion.

The lever arm system of the present invention is unconventional as a result of modification of the forward wall of the lock chamber and the lock head of the conventional coupler to provide a fulcrum point at 44. This results in a longer lever arm between the fulcrum at 44 and the intermediate fulcrum 45, the elbow joint assembly consisting of the lock 8 .and the lock lever 37. Not only is the lever length between fulcrums 44 and 45 changed but the end fulcrum 44 of the assembly is located at a higher and more rearward position in the head than in the conventional head.

Consequently, the leg of the lock in the coupler embodying the present invention swings rearwardly along a larger arc and in a more horizontal direction than do the lock legs of the conventional couplers at the finish of the coupler opening stroke. As a result, the knuckle thrower is subjected to an essentially horizontal force exerted by the lock in the final portion of the coupler opening stroke, and the force expended on the knuckle thrower is primarily "horizontal and consists of little of the lifting force accompanying the operation of the conventional lock of shorter length in the final part of the stroke. In this'manner, the force applied to the lifterin the coupler-opening operation is reduced and the manual operation thereof is'facilitated.

Operation To start the knuckle-throwing operation from the locked-position, "as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, a rotary lever 35 pivoted 'at 36 is swung upwardly to'raise the locklifter 37. In so raising, a horizontal shaft portion 39 of the lifter engages the upper end of a slot 40 in the leg of the "lock and thereupon forces the lock upwardly, as

- shown in Figs. 3 to 5.

The heel '41 of the leg'8b engages the forward surface of'the thrower arm 20 and is swung in a counterclockwise direction, as seen in Figs. 6, 7 and 8. Movement and engagement ofthe thrower occurs after the lock ridge 30 has entered the notch 31 of the ceiling and the lock has startedto pivot about the fulcrum formed by th'e ridgeBOin thenotch 31. Asthe lock pivots, its leg 8b swings in the rearward direction. 'Figs. 3 and 6 illustrate the operation wherein thrower 18 and the knuckle 6 "have rotated to the point 'of the engagementofsurfaceszl and 25a. At this instant, 'the'second stage in the knuckl'e-throwing'movement begins. Figs. 4 and 7 illustratethe'positions of the coupler'parts at a little later stage of the knckie-throwing operation, wherein the surface1 3a startsto-move away from thesurface 22 asthe rotation 'of the knu'ckle' is taken over entirely by the outer surface 21 of the thrower arm 19. The rotation of j the knuckle 8 is continued by further rotation of the thrower 18 solely by engagement of the surface 21 with the thrower pad 25 to reach the final coupler-open position, as shown in Figs. and 8.

Anti-creep protection with top operation Conventional bottom-operated lock lifters may be used in combination with the lock herein disclosed. The type of lifter shown in Figs. 1, 3, 4 and 5 is provided with a conventional anti-creep lug 48 adapted to cooperate with an anti-creep lug 49 at the lower part of the cham-' ber for the lock. However, the conventional arrangements for top operation of the coupler herein described are unsatisfactory in that they do not provide sufiicient anti-creep protection. The term anti-creep is used by the trade with respect to couplers to denote structure for preventing unintentional dislodgement of the lock from its knuckle-locking position.

Fig. 9 illustrates the coupler of the present invention adapted for top operation. This figure depicts a lock 50 (generally similar to the lock 8) in maximum displacement from its seat in normal knuckle-locking position as permittedby the anti-creep structure shown. Anticreep protection is provided in the present instance by a top lifter 51 which comprises links 52 and 53. The lock has a slot 55 extending centrally of the lock head in the longitudinal direction of the coupler and bridged by an axle or arbor 56 anchored in the head portion of the lock. The condition illustrated is that in which the lock 50 is subject to sufiicient upward force to displace it from its normal seat for securing the knuckle 58 and to jam the arbor 56 against the upper side of a slot 59 shown and described or portions thereof, but it is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the-invention claimed.

'What is claimed is:

1. A coupler compnisin-g: a head; a knuckle having a tail; a knuckle-thrower having a knuckle-engaging arm and a lock-engaging arm extending in substantially diverging directions from the pivotal axis of the thrower,

1 said knuckle and said thrower being supported within the in the lower end of the link 53. An upper shoulder 60 of the link 53 is in turn jammed against the notch surface 61 in the ceiling of the lock chamber.

The link 53 has a slot 62 traversed by a pin 63 of the link 52 which allows the link 52 to settle and tilt backwardly relative to the link 53, thereby exposing the shoulder 60 during an upward thrust. The surface 61 preferably slants forwardly and upwardly to provide good entrapment of the shoulder '60. With the link 53 wedged between the surface 61 and the arbor 56, the lock is prevented from rising to a level which would allow the knuckle 58 to pivot to its coupler-open position.

p The slack provided in the slots 59 and 60 is suflicient to allow a lip 65 projecting forwardly from the link 52 to rest on the upper surface 66 of the coupler head. Stated another way, this slack should be greater than the'distance indicated by the double-headed BHOW 67 between the lip and the surface 66 in the raised position of the link 52. The lip 65, as it rests on the surface 66 during normal seating position of the lock, causes the lower end of the link 52 to cant forwardly whereby a sudden thrust of the link 53 upwardly causes the lifter 51 as a whole to jackknife forwardly and thereby expose and bring the shoulder 60 into engagement with surface 61.

A coupler embodying the main features of the invention, as hereinabove discussed, namely: (1) a two-stage knuckle-throwing system; and (2) relocation of the fulcrum point for the lock to eliminate the conventional lug-recess fulcrum arrangement is found to be simpler in design and less expensive to build. The ability ofthe two-stage knuckle-thrower to overcome the starting friction of a knuckle is of particular merit in reducing the effort needed for manual operation. Also, the essentially horizontal movement of the lock leg, as provided by the herein described improved coupler, also facilitates the coupler-opening operation, particularly in the final portion of the stroke. Also provided is a top-operating lock lifting mechanism particularly suitable for the operation of the improved coupler herein described.

The terms and expressions which have been employed are used as terms of description and not of limitation and there is no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalents of the features head along generally parallel axes with the ambits of rotation of the tail and the knuckle-engaging arm overlapping each other; said knuckle tail having radially spaced projections extending axially from one face thereof providing a pair of thrower-engaging surfaces extending radially and axially with respect to the knuckle pivotal axis; said knuckle-engaging arm having a pair of surfaces radially spaced with respect to the thrower axis and adapted to rotate into engagement with said thrower-engaging surfaces within the region in which said ambits overlap; said pairs of surfaces-being arranged with the thrower-engaging surface further from its axis and the knuckle-engaging surface nearer its axis to engage before engagement of the other thrower-engaging surface and the other knuckleengaging surface,

2. The coupler of claim 1 wherein: said projections are arcuate pulling lugs in concentric relation to the said knuckle axis.

3. A car coupler comprising: a head; a knuckle pivoted to said head having a thrower-engaging surface which is radially inward toward the pivotal axis with respect to another outward thrower-engaging surface; and a knuckle thrower pivoted to said head having a knuckle-engaging surface which is radially inward toward the pivotal axis of the thrower with respect to another outward knuckleengaging surface; said pivotal axes being relatively spaced and said sunfaces being spaced and arranged relative to respective pivotal axes to traverse a region between said axes during rotation of the knuckle and the thrower from respective coupler-closed positions to respective coupleropen positions; said surfaces facing in the same direction of rotation about respective pivotal axes; said inward knuckle-engaging surface and said outward thrower-engaging surfaoe being spaced from respective axes and arranged to engage along a predetermined path within said region beginning said rotation; said outward knuckleengaging surface and said inward thrower-engaging surface being spaced from respective axes and arranged to engage at the end of said path and remain engaged as rotation of the thrower is continued to the coupler-open position.

4. A car coupler comprising: a head; a knuckle pivoted to said head having a thrower-engaging surface which is radially inward toward the pivotal axis of the knuckle with respect to another outward thrower-engaging surface; and a knuckle-thrower pivoted to said head having a knuckle-engaging surface which is radially inward toward the pivotal axis of the thrower with respect to another outward knuckle-engaging surface; said pivotal axes being relatively spaced and said surfaces being spaced and arranged relative to respective pivotal axes to traverse a region between said axes during rotation of the knuckle and the thrower from respective coupler-closed positions to respective coupler-open positions; said surfaces facing in the same direction of rotation about respective pivotal axes; the coupler head having a lock-receiving chamber and a bufling wall of which its side interiorly of the head defines a generally vertical front wall surface of the chamber; a lock housed in said chamber having a head portion and a leg fixed thereto extending downwardly from the head portion through an ambit traversed by the thrower in moving between said positions; said head portion terminating in an upward direction as a ridge and a top surface rearward of the ridge; a forward side of the ridge constituting an upper portion of the front face o f the head portion and the rear side being steeply inclined with respect to said face and joining concavely with the top surface; said face and said front surface of the chamber being generally straight and flat in'an upward direction; said chamber having a ceiling surface comprising-a notch along its forward margin for receiving 'said ridge; said lock "being pivotable with the. ridge in said notch as a fulcrum to dispose 'said leg 'rearwardly with respect to its head-portionto engage androtate the-thrower in effecting said rotation of theknuckle; said rear side of the'ridge being of a length'disposingit and said-top surface at'clearance'with the ceiling surface at the ooupler-openposition of thelock; said'inward-knuckle-engaging surface and said outward thrower-engaging surface being spaced from respective pivotal axes and arranged to engage along a predetermined path within said regionbeginning said rotation; said outward knuckle-engaging surface and said inward thrower-engaging surface being spaced from respective axes and arranged 'toengage at the end of said path and remain engaged .as rotation of the thrower is continued to the coupler-open position.

5. The car coupler of claim 4 comprisingz a top lifter extending downwardly through an opening in said head with the lower end of the lifter pivotally connected to the head portion ofthe lock; a'lifter comprising an upper link, a lower link, and pivotal means for connecting the two links in end to-end relationship; the lower link having an upwardly-facing anti-creep shoulder disposed above said connecting means and being normally concealed in the upper :link in thealignment of the lifter during normal coupler-closed condition wherein the'lifter is pendantly supported by an upper portion of the upper link; said shoulder being-rotated out .of concealment along the forward side of the lifter when said links are relatively angled to dispose said connecting means forwardly out of said alignment; said shoulder in exposed position underlying, and engageable with, a portion of said ceiling surface adjacent the forward end of said opening; an upper portion of the upper link having forwardly-extending lip adapted to rest on an upwardly-facing area adjacent the forward end of said opening; said connecting means being normally disposed forwardly out of said alignment when the lip rests on said area.

6. The car coupler of claim 5 wherein: said portion of the ceiling surface inclines forwardly and upwardly from the front end of the opening.

7. A knuckle-thrower for a car coupler having means aligned along an axis of rotation adapting the thrower for pivotal attachment to a coupler and comprising: "a knuckle-engaging 'arm extending radially outwardly from said axis and having abutment surfaces spaced at different radii from said axis facing in thesamedirectiom ofrotation adapting the knuckle thrower :for engaging spaced \surfaces of a knuckle.

.8. A lock comprising: a head portion having a straight,

fiat, lateral face extendingin the lengthwise :direction of the lock between opposite ends of the head portion; a'leg for engaging a knuckle-thrower fixedly joined to, and extending away from, one end of the headportion in said direction; the head portion having a ridge and top surface defining its other end, the length of the ridge extending in tra'nsverserelation to said direction; one side of the ridge forming a portion of said face and the other ,side being steeply inclined :with respect-tosaid face and vjoining concavely with said top surface; said ridge being of a height above said top surface adapting the lock for pivotal engagement with a coupler head solely along the crown of said ridge. 0 9. A lock according to claim 8 having a slot adapted for receiving a lifting device extending inwardly of the head portion from said top surface in said lengthwise direction.

10. A coupler head for a knuckle-type coupler having a chamber adapted for housing a lock in longitudinal and pivotal movement; a vertical bufling Wall having a flat, vertically-straight surface interiorly of the'head constituting the front surface of said chamber, said chamber having a ceiling surface comprising an upwardly indentedor notched portion extending along the junction of said front surface with the ceiling surface adapting said portion to complementally receive an upwardly-protruding front ridge of said lock.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,932,503 Bazeley Oct. 31, 1933 1,973,862 Bazeley Sept. 18, 1934 2,170,891 Bazeley Aug. 29, 1939 2,689,051 Kayler Sept. .14, 1954 2,709,007 Metzger May 24, .1955 

